There was about six minutes left in the second quarter when Albert Lea boys’ basketball coach Matt Addington made a rather drastic decision.

Friday, February 01, 2002

There was about six minutes left in the second quarter when Albert Lea boys’ basketball coach Matt Addington made a rather drastic decision.

All five Tiger starters were pulled. Reserves played until halftime.

The starters’ response? A 19-0 run to start the third quarter, sparking a 36-32 victory over Mankato West in a Big Nine game at Albert Lea High School Thursday night.

Addington, whose team improved to 8-7 overall and 6-5 in the Big Nine, said the reserves deserve the credit and listed them all – Marcus Thorstad, Jason Kuipers, Jay Link, Corey Bowman, Scott Hoeg, Brandon Smith.

The Tigers trailed 12-3 when the starters were benched. It was 16-7 at halftime.

&uot;Those guys may not have scored a lot, but they inspired this conference win for us,&uot; said Addington. &uot;They played with passion, diving all over the floor and playing their hearts out. It was the way our starters needed to play, and they finally did. It was as much a team win as I’ve ever been involved in.&uot;

The Tigers took a 30-20 advantage into the fourth quarter which, according to Addington, &uot;got a little ugly.&uot;

&uot;But we hung on in the fourth quarter,&uot; said the first-year head coach. &uot;It was a good win for us.&uot;

The Tigers had 14 turnovers to 23 for West, 15 of which came in the second half. Albert Lea was 12-for-32 on two-point field goals, 2-for-4 on threes and 4-for-13 at the line. The Scarlets made only six of 24 from inside the arc, five of 17 threes and five of nine free throws.

Ben Woodside led the Tigers with 12 points, nine steals and six assists. Tyler Young had nine points and 13 rebounds.

The Tigers are on the road Tuesday at Rochester John Marshall.